‘Arab future in foreign hands’

‘End rifts, solve own issues’

“IN POLITICS, ambition is always linked to practical reality because humans cannot understand what they want particularly if their ship is moving against the wind, as an Arab poet says,” columnist and former MP Abdulmohsen Yusuf Jamal wrote for Al-Qabas daily.

“Speaking of the Arab recent summit near the Dead Sea in Jordan, it is needless to say this summit has faced a difficult reality and it is known to all, particularly since we know that solving of the Arab-Arab crisis is not in the hands of Arabs, rather in the hands of others — the great powers — and the latter are being consulted for any Arab-Arab solution.

“It has been said the delegates to the Arab summit have agreed to send representatives to the capitals of the so-called great powers to find necessary solutions for Arab problems because Arabs have failed to solve the Arab problems.

“As a matter of fact, HH the Amir always observes the situations and promptly diagnoses the Arab reality. Speaking before the delegates to the Dead Sea Summit, HH the Amir said what is currently facing the Arab world in terms of big challenges and imminent dangers entail that we must abide by a new method different from the current one.

“In this context, HH the Amir has made it clear and he was frank when he said ‘the so-called Arab Spring has actually undermined the security and stability of the brotherly nations and this has impeded the development in these countries’.

“He added, ‘the negative repercussions of the Arab Spring have actually seeped into many other parts of the Arab world leading to steady deterioration of the security and the peoples of these countries face a life of bitter torment’.

“Notwithstanding, the accurate diagnosis of the situations by HH the Amir before the delegates shall ring a bell in the ears of the leaders of the Arab nation, particularly when he said ‘the differences which have surfaced at the moment will result in more divisions and this will reflect on our attitudes when we deal with various issues. This shall give birth to a state of weakness and promote incoherence in our ranks’.

“In this connection, persistent Arab-Arab differences in the absence of real diagnosis and serious attempts to provide necessary solutions coming from the Arab reality but rather depending on the foreign countries including the great powers to deal with the Arab-Arab differences will bear no fruit, nothing but aggravate and deepen the crisis, because the foreign countries will only look at their interests and will not exert any efforts to look at the sufferings of our countries and our peoples.

“Consequently, we suggest HH the Amir has rightfully told the delegates to the recent Arab Summit and urged them to hold themselves above their current differences and work to find solutions for the Arab-Arab problems, provided these solutions are realistic, and not based on the dreams of the foreign countries which are currently striving to persuade us about the feasibility of these dreams.

“In the meantime, we must keep in mind that the great powers will surprise us sooner or later that they are dealing with the global problems including the Arab issues through the relevant realities, but not through emotions, or in response to our desires.”

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Jamal

“I have read and heard that the Iraqi prime minster calls for normalizing ties with the elderly sisterly country — the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and open the doors for commercial investments between the two Arab neighbors,” columnist Abdulaziz Al-Tamimi wrote for Al-Shahed daily.

“Certainly both the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Iraq, are two important nations within the Arab and Islamic geography, but I think the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi has chosen the wrong term, ‘normalization’ as it has been reported, because I believe the appropriate sentence Al-Abadi should have used is ‘to boost and enrich the fraternal relations between the two sisterly countries of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Iraq’.

“We say the above, because the term ‘normalization’, can be used for resuming ties between two antagonizing nations, but our peoples in the Arabian Gulf are linked with fraternal ties in terms of blood, religion and language. In other words, we are living under one ceiling and don’t need ‘normalization’.

“Such being the case, we would like to address the Iraqi prime minister by saying ‘Your Excellency, you are welcome in your country the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia among your brothers’.

“In this regard may I take upon myself to speak on behalf of our brothers in Saudi Arabia and tell Your Excellency that all of us in the Arabian Gulf and Iraq are brothers in terms of blood bonds, and this means neither we nor you will need normalization or the so-called protocol because our doors shall remain open for our peoples and eventually keep in mind that our emotions towards our Arab peoples are unlimited.

“In this context, we would like to point out that the rules of the right neighborhood, can be realized by the Arabs like Your Excellency, hence, you have to expect every appreciation from your brothers in the Arabia Gulf, particularly if you have extended the hand of cooperation and solidarity to them far away from the intervention of the foreigners who are hiding under the cloak of Islam.

“In conclusion, I would like to say Your Excellency you are welcome to any place in the Arab world. We also need no official invitation from you to visit your country, because we prefer to stay away from the diplomatic traditions in this respect. Looking forward to see you and hoping that our relations will not be troubled by the intervention of any foreign party.”

“Several Muslims have relocated from their home countries to Europe, the United States, Canada and Australia to become immigrant settlers there,” Sultan Al-Khalaf wrote for Al-Anba daily.

“They have left their home countries due to unfavorable political situation there, especially military coups, regimes which do not respect the right of people to make dignified living, coupled with unemployment and low standard of living. People are forced to search for greener pastures or education and Muslim immigrants have to contend with a new lifestyle and contribute meritorious services to their newly found countries. Many of them occupy high political places and some of them turn out to be great physicians, surgeons, engineers, experts and scientists.

“Former Director of Space Research Institute in the United States Farouq Al-Baz and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry Ahmad Zuwael is among them. In spite of meritorious services offered by Muslim migrants to the West, the governments are still uncomfortable integrating them completely in their societies.”

“A series of attacks recently carried out by the opposition in Damascus and several other locations in Syria is an affirmation that Bashar regime and Iran are not capable of stopping them without the support of Russia,” Talal Abdulkareem Al-Arab wrote for Al-Qabas daily.

“The Syrian regime has been moving towards collapse regardless of the monstrous different forces of invasion against Syrians. The only option left for Bashar regime and Iran is to request for support from the powerful Russia, which is capable of rescuing Syrian regime from the imminent dead-end and save Iran from ruthless defeat.

“In December 2016, Iran and Russia interfered under the guise of fighting DAESH, so they left DAESH aside, while they mounted severe attacks on the opposition and civilians with bombs and hand grenades. They did not differentiate between fighters and infants, and did not see any difference between military bases, hospitals and refugee camps.”

“Constitutional citizenship is the basis of a democratic civil state. There is no relation between other frameworks, such as ideologies, families and origins, and their citizenship, rights and general duties,” Dr Fahad Marzouq Al-Enezi wrote for Al-Kuwaitiah daily.

“It is known that democracy is a political and social system, in which people are the source of sovereignty and power. Add to this, democracy makes the society control itself through representatives. There is no doubt that practicing democracy, as one among the elements of citizenship, is linked to citizenship. Any political propositions remain applicable because it can include any citizen.

“The consolidation and establishment of the constitutionality principles means that the authorities derive its legitimacy from the high legal reference, and citizens respect the Constitution and refer to the judiciary to settle their conflicts.”

“When are we going to be an effective nation that adopts and embraces factors that make us effective and beneficial? Those who think they can continue living without improving their knowledge and culture by reading, acquiring knowledge, and encouraging their family members or friends to read especially subjects related to arts and science, are wrong,” Dr Sabah Al-Suwaifan wrote for Al-Rai daily.

“By living, we mean becoming effective individuals that contribute to the society. Through reading, individuals widen their horizon of knowledge. We were once a “reading nation.” How did we become a nation that does not read? Even when we read, we are not patient enough to carry out serious constructive reading. A lot of us are fond of reading entertainment stuff that lack substance and articles about famous people and stars or scandals and other strange subjects. When it comes to serious constructive reading of scientific or artistic books, we get bored very fast.

“Reading is the only way for nations to rise to top positions; otherwise nations are condemned to backwardness. Yes, the Arab and Islamic societies all boast about the old ages which did not attain civilization and scientific development but still took the world by surprise through the habit of reading and seeking knowledge.

“We are required to be readers; not just readers but serious readers to reach the required levels. Let us read and teach others what we have learnt. Let the books be our guide to development because we are seriously not doing our nations any good by waiting for someone else to come with the knowledge we want or for someone else to come and invent and discover for us.”

“Honorable lawmaker Riyadh Al-Adsani in his blogs sought explanation from us regarding the recent state of affairs in the local political terrain — the most notable of the inquiry was government’s relationship with the Islamic Constitutional Movement (ICM),” Mubarak Fahad Al-Duwailah wrote for Al-Qabas daily.

“We are obliged to comment on the issue, considering the questions are legitimate and have been circulated on the surface from various quarters. It came from somebody whose case is important to us, because we understand his mindset, and we’ll avoid fishing in dirty waters in the same way the antagonists of the movement act on small and big issues.

“The lawmaker asked about stripping MPs Jam’aan Al-Harbash and Merdas Al-Ajmi of their parliamentary immunity. He wondered if there was any agreement with government in that regard. This is a legitimate inquiry but he’s not aware that the ministers present voted in favor of lifting the immunity! Look at the antagonists of the movement around you today who are busy crying foul and suspicion each day and night. You will notice they’re not the kind of personalities whose involvement will be of interest to you.”

“Taking care of people with special needs is a commendable humanitarian attitude. Our religion urges everybody to imbibe this trait by all possible means and approaches,” Abdul-Rahman Al-Awwad wrote for Al-Sabah daily.

“Islam played a frontline role in taking care of the rights of people of this category, as the religion takes care of people of all categories. It teaches preservation of people’s dignity, justice and equality. It encourages the need to balance between their rights and rights of other normal people, especially their rights to job, education, training and engagement.

“Kuwait is one of the countries that provide full welfare to this segment such that their right to basic and secondary education. The government completely bears the costs in both stages. It also creates an avenue for them to engage in sporting activities, in addition to tertiary education. They are recognized in Kuwait as an integral part of the society with roles to play in the national development and to move the wheel of development forward.”

“A group of academics and professors at the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET) were referred for investigation last week over statements they posted on social media expressing their opinions on outstanding problems the sector and its affiliates face,” columnist Ahmad Al-Khayat wrote for Al Jarida daily.

“It’s a shame that discussion in an academic edifice has reached a dictatorial level and professors are dragged to court for expressing opinion. The issue was supposed be resolved amicably with all frankness instead of using threats or a neutral committee.

“Obviously, the complainants resorted to social media to be heard, because their calls met deaf ears. Major issues are yet-to-be disclosed if those expressing opinions have been referred for investigation as punishment.

“The idea of referring personnel to investigation is not a good way of in dealing with academics considered role models to their students. PAAET must respect its academic staff.

“I am friend of some colleagues who work there, and I know the kind of problems they are facing. The sector without doubt needs reform, and nobody should be silent about it. The intervention of the Minister of Education Dr Mohammad Al-Fares is needed to rescue the deteriorating situation in the authority.”

— Compiled by Zaki Taleb